TSWA recognizes college players of the week - Oct. 28

October 28, 2025 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE – Austin Peay’s Chris Parson and Montreze Smith, Jr., were named Tennessee Sports Writers Association Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, on Tuesday, as announced by the organization.

Parson completed 17-of-24 passes for 311 yards and three touchdowns while rushing 12 times for 53 yards and three more TDs in a 56-28 victory over North Alabama. He tossed a season-long 79-yard scoring pass along with TD throws of six and 47 yards. He posted a 10-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and 37 and six-yard TD carries in the fourth quarter. The Governors scored 21 of the final 28 points of the contest to pull away, with Parson accounting for 364 yards of total offense in the contest.

Smith, Jr., registered 12 tackles with 10 solo stops, one tackle for loss and two interceptions. He picked off a pass at the APSU 31-yard line late in the first quarter, returning it 24 yards, and another in the fourth period at the APSU goal line.

MEN’S SOCCER: Lincoln Memorial’s Gian-Carlo Kama earned Men’s Soccer Player of the Week honors, netting three goals in a 4-3 back-and-forth win over Carson-Newman. He scored in the 15th minute for the first goal of the match and recorded the equalizer in the 74th minute. He found the back of the net again five minutes later for the game-winner. He leads the club with seven goals this season.

WOMEN’S SOCCER: Maryville College’s Hannah Smoot was voted Women’s Soccer Player of the Week accolades, registering three goals with an assist in a Scots victory against Wesleyan College. She netted goals in the 10th, 25th and 42nd minutes and assisted on a goal in the 39th minute. She leads the team with 11 goals and five assists this year.

VOLLEYBALL: Carson-Newman’s Emerson Ahsmuhs collected Volleyball Player of the Week recognition, logging her 10th and 11th double-doubles of the season in two matches for the Eagles. She recorded 20 kills and 13 digs versus Mars Hill and added 19 kills and 20 digs against Catawba College for her fifth straight double-double. The 20 digs against Catawba marked the fifth 20-dig outing of the season for the sophomore.

2025 TSWA FOOTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Sept. 3 l Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (Offense); Colton Hood, Tennessee (Defense)
Sept. 9 | Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (Offense); Theron Gaines, Tennessee Tech (Defense)
Sept. 16 | Bryson Rollins, Maryville College (Offense); CJ Heard, Vanderbilt (Defense)
Sept. 23 | Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (Offense); Cannon Johnson, Cumberland (Defense)
Sept. 30 | Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (Offense); Arion Carter, Tennessee (Defense)
Oct. 7 | Kekeo Visperas, Tennessee Tech (Offense); Kamari Todd, Chattanooga (Defense)
Oct. 14 | DeSean Bishop, Tennessee (Offense); Jacquese Abner, Maryville College (Defense)
Oct. 21 | Camden Orth, Chattanooga (Offense); Cruz Temple, Carson-Newman (Defense)
Oct. 28 | Chris Parson, Austin Peay (Offense); Montreze Smith, Jr., Austin Peay (Defense)

2025 TSWA VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Sept. 3 l Caroline Macander, Middle Tennessee
Sept. 9 | Kylie Wilhelmi, Maryville College
Sept. 16 | Emerson Ahsmuhs, Carson-Newman
Sept. 23 | Kamryn Chaney, Vanderbilt
Sept. 30 | Raegan Durbin, Middle Tennessee
Oct. 7 | Addison Cunnagin, Trevecca Nazarene
Oct. 14 | Raegan Durbin, Middle Tennessee
Oct. 21 | Caroline Macander, Middle Tennessee
Oct. 28 | Emerson Ahsmuhs, Carson-Newman

TSWA/USA Today Network Prep Poll - Oct. 27

October 27, 2025 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Sports Writers Association and USA Today Network announced football rankings after Week 10 on Monday. Top 10 teams in each of the six Division I classifications and Top 5 in three Division II classes were selected by TSWA members and USA Today writers with first-place votes in parentheses and total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote.

Division I
Class 1A
1. McKenzie (8-1) – 165 (12). Last Week: No. 1
2. South Pittsburg (8-1) – 158 (5). Last Week: No. 2
3. Coalfield (7-2) – 134. Last Week: No. 3
4. Clay County (8-1) – 111. Last Week: No. 4
5. Hampton (8-1) – 104. Last Week: No. 5
6. Dresden (7-2) – 93. Last Week: No. 6
7. Richland (7-2) – 66. Last Week: No. 7
8. Memphis Middle College (7-1) – 46. Last Week: No. 9
9. Midway (6-3) – 24. Last Week: 10
10. Sale Creek (8-1) – 20. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 2A
1. Milan (8-0) – 167 (14). Last Week: No. 1
2. East Robertson (9-0) – 156 (3). Last Week: No. 2
3. Marion County (8-1) – 128. Last Week: No. 4
4. Huntingdon (8-1) – 122. Last Week: No. 5
5. Gordonsville (9-0) – 98. Last Week: No. 6
6. Peabody (8-1) – 73. Last Week: No. 3
7. Fairley (7-2) – 69. Last Week: No. 7
8. East Nashville (4-4) – 56. Last Week: No. 8
9. Happy Valley (9-0) – 38. Last Week: No. 9
10. Bledsoe County (7-2) – 20. Last Week: No. 10
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 3A
1. Westview (8-0) – 170 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Gatlinburg-Pittman (9-0) – 144. Last Week: No. 2
3. Covington (9-0) – 137. Last Week: No. 3
4. Tyner Academy (8-1) – 118. Last Week: No. 4
5. Meigs County (8-1) – 104. Last Week: No. 5
6. Melrose (7-1) – 82. Last Week: No. 6
7. Sequatchie County (7-2) – 70. Last Week: No. 7
8. Waverly (9-0) – 54. Last Week: 8
9. Unicoi County (6-2) – 37. Last Week: No. 10
10. Fairview (7-2) – 10. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 4A
1. Alcoa (9-0) – 170 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Greeneville (8-1) – 149. Last Week: No. 2
3. Springfield (8-1)– 119. Last Week: No. 3
4. Pearl-Cohn (5-4) – 108. Last Week: No. 4
5. Upperman (7-2) – 106. Last Week: No. 5
6. Elizabethton (8-1) – 95. Last Week: 6
7. Anderson County (6-2) – 77. Last Week: No. 7
8. Haywood (7-2) – 54. Last Week: No. 8
9. Stone Memorial (7-1) – 40. Last Week: No. 10
10. South Gibson (6-3) – 13. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 5A
1. Page (8-0) – 169 (16). Last Week: No. 1
2. Sevier County (8-1) – 145. Last Week: No. 2
3. Munford (9-0) – 143 (1). Last Week: No. 3
4. Powell (7-1) – 117. Last Week: No. 4
5. Beech (7-1) – 106. Last Week: No. 5
6. East Hamilton (8-1) – 81. Last Week: No. 7
7. Kirkwood (8-1) – 63. Last Week: No. 8
8. Knox Central (7-2) – 55. Last Week: No. 9
9. Rhea County (7-2) – 28. Last Week: No. 10
10. Walker Valley (7-2) – 22. Last Week: No. 6
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 6A
1. Oakland (9-0) – 170 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Ravenwood (9-0) – 151. Last Week: No. 2
3. Maryville (8-1) – 137. Last Week: No. 3
4. Oak Ridge (9-0) – 117. Last Week: No. 4
5. Southwind (9-0) – 102. Last Week: No. 5
6. Blackman (8-1) – 82. Last Week: No. 8
7. Riverdale (7-2) – 57. Last Week: No. 9
8. Germantown (7-2) – 55. Last Week: No. 6
9. Antioch (8-1) – 37. Last Week: No. 7
10. Dobyns Bennett (8-1) – 13. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Division II-A
1. Nashville Christian (9-0) – 85 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Friendship Christian (8-1) – 67. Last Week: No. 3
3. University School of Jackson (8-1) – 50. Last Week: 2
4. Trinity Christian (7-2) – 35. Last Week: No. 4
5. Jackson Christian (8-1) – 18. Last Week: No. 5
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Division II-AA
1. Boyd Buchanan (8-0) – 83 (16). Last Week: No. 1
2. Franklin Road Academy (7-1) – 69 (1). Last Week: No. 2
3. Battle Ground Academy (8-1) – 52. Last Week: No. 3
4. Grace Christian Academy-Knoxville (7-2) – 32. Last Week: No. 4
5. Lausanne Collegiate (5-3) – 18. Last Week: 5
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Division II-AAA
1. Baylor School (8-0) – 85 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Brentwood Academy (8-0) – 66. Last Week: No. 2
3. McCallie School (7-2) – 44. Last Week: No. 4
4. Ensworth School (6-3) – 42. Last Week: No. 3
5. Briarcrest Christian (6-3) – 18. Last Week: No. 5
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Publications that participated in the voting include The Tennessean in Nashville, the Knoxville News-Sentinel, The Commercial Appeal in Memphis, The Daily Herald in Columbia, The Daily News Journal in Murfreesboro, The Leaf-Chronicle in Clarksville, 615Preps.com, The Chattanooga Times-Free Press, Five Star Preps, The Mirror-Exchange in Milan, Tri-Cities Sports, The Westmoreland News, The Herald Citizen in Cookeville and Union City Messenger.

College players of the week recognized by TSWA - Oct. 21

October 21, 2025 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE – Chattanooga’s Camden Orth and Carson-Newman’s Cruz Temple were named Tennessee Sports Writers Association Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, on Tuesday, as announced by the organization.

Orth engineered the second-largest fourth-quarter comeback in school history, helping erase a 38-21 deficit with three touchdown passes in the final 10-plus minutes in a 42-38 victory over East Tennessee State. He completed 20-of-32 passes for 343 yards and four touchdowns in the game with eight completions of 20-plus yards.

He tossed scoring passes of 22, 20 and four yards, the final one with 11 seconds to play. The Mocs took over at their own 33-yard line with 1:55 left in regulation and one timeout, with Orth completing 6-of-8 passes for 40 yards, spiking the ball for both incompletions on the drive. He also ran for 22 yards on the game-winning drive and accounted for 374 yards of total offense in the contest.

Temple posted nine total tackles, five solo, with 1.0 tackles for loss and three quarterback hurries in a 28-6 win against Anderson University. The Eagles tallied 15 QB hurries in the game, the most in a contest in the last 15 years, and limited Anderson to 270 yards of total offense. The Trojans entered the contest averaging almost 400 yards and nearly 30 points per game this season.

MEN’S SOCCER: Union University’s Christian Harjanne tallied three goals in just over a half to garner Player of the Week accolades. In a 5-2 victory over Spring Hill College, he scored in the 14th minute on an assist from Ostian Bowen, again in the 16th minute from Bowen and Marc Badibanga and recorded the hat trick with a goal in the 52nd minute, again from Bowen. Harjanne has posted four goal in 10 matches this season.

WOMEN’S SOCCER: Vanderbilt’s Sydney Watts recorded two goals and one assist in two SEC victories for the Commodores to earn Player of the Week honors. She scored in the 35th minute, her 10th of the season, at Mississippi State, then turned provider just three minutes later, assisting Vivian Akyirem’s goal to help Vanderbilt build a 4-0 first-half lead. Against fourth-ranked Tennessee, Watts sealed the match with a breakaway goal in the 82nd to secure to Commodores’ first-ever Top 5 win. She finished the week with seven points, giving her at 24 for the year, a career-best.

VOLLEYBALL: Middle Tennessee’s Caroline Macander posted 97 assists, 28 digs, eight kills and five blocks in two matches for the Blue Raiders to garner Player of the Week recognition. She recorded 53 assists with 16 digs and three blocks in the first of two matches versus Liberty. Macander followed that with 44 assists, 12 digs and two blocks in the second match against the Flames. It marked her 14th and 15th career double-doubles. She averaged 9.70 assists and 2.80 digs per set in the two matches and ranks sixth in the conference in digs this season.

2025 TSWA FOOTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Sept. 3 | Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (Offense); Colton Hood, Tennessee (Defense)
Sept. 9 | Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (Offense); Theron Gaines, Tennessee Tech (Defense)
Sept. 16 | Bryson Rollins, Maryville College (Offense); CJ Heard, Vanderbilt (Defense)
Sept. 23 | Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (Offense); Cannon Johnson, Cumberland (Defense)
Sept. 30 | Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (Offense); Arion Carter, Tennessee (Defense)
Oct. 7 | Kekeo Visperas, Tennessee Tech (Offense); Kamari Todd, Chattanooga (Defense)
Oct. 14 | DeSean Bishop, Tennessee (Offense); Jacquese Abner, Maryville College (Defense)
Oct. 21 | Camden Orth, Chattanooga (Offense); Cruz Temple, Carson-Newman (Defense)

TSWA/USA Today Network Prep Poll - Oct. 20

October 20, 2025 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Sports Writers Association and USA Today Network announced football rankings after Week 9 on Monday. Top 10 teams in each of the six Division I classifications and Top 5 in three Division II classes were selected by TSWA members and USA Today writers with first-place votes in parentheses and total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote.

Division I
Class 1A
1. McKenzie (7-1) – 167 (14). Last Week: No. 1
2. South Pittsburg (7-1) – 156 (3). Last Week: No. 2
3. Coalfield (6-2) – 133. Last Week: No. 3
4. Clay County (7-1) – 114. Last Week: No. 4
5. Hampton (7-1) – 103. Last Week: No. 5
6. Dresden (6-2) – 90. Last Week: No. 6
7. Richland (6-2) – 66. Last Week: No. 7
8. South Fulton (7-1) – 47. Last Week: No. 9
9. Memphis Middle College (6-1) – 34. Last Week: No. 9
10. Midway (5-3) – 14. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 2A
1. Milan (8-0) – 165 (12). Last Week: No. 1
2. East Robertson (8-0) – 158 (5). Last Week: No. 2
3. Peabody (8-0) – 126. Last Week: No. 3
4. Marion County (7-1) – 123. Last Week: No. 4
5. Huntingdon (7-1) – 101. Last Week: No. 5
6. Gordonsville (8-0) – 81. Last Week: No. 6
7. Fairley (6-2) – 59. Last Week: No. 7
8. East Nashville (3-4) – 58. Last Week: No. 8
9. Happy Valley (8-0) – 39. Last Week: No. 10
10. Bledsoe County (6-2) – 11. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 3A
1. Westview (7-0) – 170 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Gatlinburg-Pittman (8-0) – 149. Last Week: No. 2
3. Covington (8-0) – 138. Last Week: No. 3
4. Tyner Academy (7-1) – 114. Last Week: No. 4
5. Meigs County (7-1) – 104. Last Week: No. 5
6. Melrose (6-1) – 85. Last Week: No. 6
7. Sequatchie County (6-2) – 65. Last Week: No. 7
8. Waverly (8-0) – 57. Last Week: 8
9. White House Heritage (6-2) – 31. Last Week: No. 10
10. Unicoi County (6-2) – 18. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 4A
1. Alcoa (8-0) – 170 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Greeneville (7-1) – 149. Last Week: No. 2
3. Springfield (7-1)– 123. Last Week: No. 3
4. Pearl-Cohn (4-4) – 110. Last Week: No. 4
5. Upperman (6-2) – 101. Last Week: No. 5
6. Elizabethton (7-1) – 92. Last Week: 6
7. Anderson County (5-2) – 77. Last Week: No. 7
8. Haywood (6-2) – 47. Last Week: No. 8
9. White County (7-1) – 45. Last Week: No. 9
10. Stone Memorial (7-1) – 20. Last Week: No. 10
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 5A
1. Page (7-0) – 169 (16). Last Week: No. 1
2. Sevier County (7-1) – 146. Last Week: No. 3
3. Munford (8-0) – 134 (1). Last Week: No. 4
4. Powell (6-1) – 113. Last Week: No. 2
5. Beech (6-1) – 107. Last Week: No. 5
6. Walker Valley (7-1) – 91. Last Week: No. 6
7. East Hamilton (7-1) – 63. Last Week: No. 7
8. Kirkwood (7-1) – 51. Last Week: No. 8
9. Knox Central (6-2) – 43. Last Week: No. 9
10. Rhea County (7-1) – 11. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Class 6A
1. Oakland (8-0) – 170 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Ravenwood (8-0) – 152. Last Week: No. 2
3. Maryville (7-1) – 132. Last Week: No. 3
4. Oak Ridge (8-0) – 110. Last Week: No. 4
5. Southwind (8-0) – 106. Last Week: No. 5
6. Germantown (7-1) – 81. Last Week: No. 6
7. Antioch (8-0) – 68. Last Week: No. 7
8. Blackman (7-1) – 60. Last Week: No. 8
9. Riverdale (6-2) – 35. Last Week: No. 9
10. Bradley Central (6-2) – 12. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Division II-A
1. Nashville Christian (8-0) – 85 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Friendship Christian (7-1) – 64. Last Week: No. 3
3. University School of Jackson (7-1) – 46. Last Week: 2
4. Trinity Christian (6-2) – 42. Last Week: No. 4
5. Jackson Christian (7-1) – 18. Last Week: No. 5
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Division II-AA
1. Boyd Buchanan (7-0) – 80 (14). Last Week: No. 1
2. Franklin Road Academy (6-1) – 71 (3). Last Week: No. 2
3. Battle Ground Academy (7-1) – 53. Last Week: No. 3
4. Grace Christian Academy-Knoxville (6-2) – 34. Last Week: No. 4
5. Lausanne Collegiate (4-3) – 11. Last Week: Not Ranked
Other who received 10 or more points: None

Division II-AAA
1. Baylor School (7-0) – 85 (17). Last Week: No. 1
2. Brentwood Academy (7-0) – 66. Last Week: No. 2
3. Ensworth School (6-2) – 49. Last Week: No. 3
4. McCallie School (6-2) – 38. Last Week: No. 4
5. Briarcrest Christian (5-3) – 16. Last Week: No. 5
Other who received 10 or more points: None

TSWA honors college players of the week - Oct. 14

October 14, 2025 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE – Tennessee’s DeSean Bishop and Maryville College’s Jacquese Abner were named Tennessee Sports Writers Association Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, on Tuesday, as announced by the organization.

Bishop rushed for a career-best 146 yards on 14 carries with one touchdown in Tennessee’s 34-31 victory over Arkansas. He averaged 10.4 yards per carry and 64 of his yards came after contact. Bishop posted a 17-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. Bishop became the fourth Tennessee running back (QB Joshua Dobbs did it twice) in the last 19 seasons (2007-25) to total 140-plus rushing yards and average 10-plus yards per carry, including the only player to do so in a home SEC contest.

Abner registered two game-changing plays in a 33-13 win against Centre College. He blocked a 29-yard field goal attempt, preserving Maryville’s two-touchdown lead. Minutes later, the senior sealed the victory with a 32-yard interception return for a touchdown, his first career pick-six, to put the game out of reach. Abner added a pass breakup and a tackle in the victory, giving the Scots a 5-0 record this season.

MEN’S SOCCER: King University’s Gavin Roux earned Men’s Soccer Player of the Week accolades, recording 16 saves in two outings for the Tornado. He tallied a career-best 13 saves in a scoreless draw against Converse College and added three more saves versus Francis Marion. Roux has allowed eight goals in eight matches and has 34 saves with three shutouts this season.

WOMEN’S SOCCER: University of Memphis sophomore Ai Kitagawa was named Women’s Soccer Player of the Week, scoring three goals in two matches for the Tigers. She scored in the 70th minute on assists from Ashley Henderson and Mihiro Furuya in a victory against North Texas. Kitagawa collected her first two-goal outing in a 2-1 win versus Florida Atlantic, getting the Tigers on the board in the 47th minute on assists from Elise Perron and Flavie Dube. Perron assisted on the game-winner in the 89th minute by Kitagawa, who has eight goals and three assists in 13 matches this season.

VOLLEYBALL: Middle Tennessee’s Raegan Durbin garnered Volleyball Player of the Week recognition, registering 41 kills, 20 digs and nine service aces in three matches. She posted 10 kills and a career-best five service aces in a midweek contest versus Tennessee State. In the first of two outings against Delaware, she recorded 26 kills, seven digs and three service aces. She followed that with 15 kills and five digs in the second match versus the Blue Hens. Durbin has tallied 226 kills (3.82 per set), 178 digs (2.58 per set) and 28 service aces in 18 matches this season.